In an interview with Jacqueline Winspear, Andi Schechter of Library Journal points out that "World War I is a major theme" in the book. As Maisie uncovers the mystery of The Retreat she is also confronted with her own ghosts from the war after ten years of holding the memories at bay. With the help of Billy Beale, a caretaker at her office and veteran of the Great War himself, she is able to infiltrate The Retreat. Maisie must act fast when she learns that Lady Compton's own son has signed over his fortune to The Retreat and is about to take asylum there. Her first seemingly open-and-shut case involves her in a mystery surrounding something known as The Retreat, a suspicious home for veterans of the war.
In 1929, after Blanche has retired, Maisie opens her own investigation business. Part of the mystery surrounding Maisie is what happens to the young man.Īfter the war, Maisie apprentices with Blanche in his investigative work. Deciding that the war efforts are extremely important to her and her country, Maisie volunteers as a nurse at the front, where she meets a young man, with whom she falls in love. World War I intensifies, and the pressures of war can be felt in Maisie's England. When Maisie becomes old enough she attends Girton College at Cambridge University, but threats of war soon intervene. Blanche, a discreet investigator, teaches Maisie as much as he can about psychology, science, and anything else Maisie is willing to learn. Soon after getting caught in Lady Compton's library fulfilling her joy of reading and learning, Maisie is introduced to Maurice Blanche, close friend of the Comptons, and becomes his pupil. Maisie becomes a maid at the Belgravia Mansion of Lady Rowan Compton in 1910 at thirteen years old, after her mother dies, and she must help her father make ends meet. It is the first in the series of Maisie Dobbs novels. Generally well received by critics, mostly because of Maisie's quirky character, the novel was nominated for several awards and received the 2003 Agatha Award for Best First Novel. Set in England between 19, it features the title character Maisie Dobbs, a private investigator building her business in the aftermath of the First World War. Maisie Dobbs is a 2003 mystery novel by Jacqueline Winspear.
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